7.But the Israelites were fruitful and prolific; they became so numerous and powerful that eventually the whole land was full of them.

8.Then there came to power in Egypt a new king who had never heard of Joseph.

9.'Look,' he said to his people, 'the Israelites are now more numerous and stronger than we are.

10.We must take precautions to stop them from increasing any further, or if war should break out, they might join the ranks of our enemies. They might take arms against us and then escape from the country.'

11.Accordingly they put taskmasters over the Israelites to wear them down by forced labour. In this way they built the store-cities of Pithom and Rameses for Pharaoh.

12.But the harder their lives were made, the more they increased and spread, until people came to fear the Israelites.